WEDNESDAY, JAN. 20, 2021 | IN THIS ISSUE
• Council approves $12.25M TIF for Ped Mall redevelopment
• In the CBJ: Moyna projects reshaping southern Corridor
• Video: Marion streetscape project kicks off this spring
• IC Area HBA Some Show goes virtual for 2021
• Have a derecho rebuilding story to share? Let us know
• Corridor events, KCRG-TV9 headlines and First Alert Forecast
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Council approves $12.25M TIF for Ped Mall redevelopment |
The Iowa City Council has approved $12.25 million in tax increment financing to support a $54.4 million project aimed at preserving and giving new life to a segment of the city's downtown Pedestrian Mall.
Council members voted unanimously Tuesday to advance Minnesota-based Tailwind Group's plan to redevelop the 100 block of East College Street. Tailwind anticipates renovating spaces in the College, Crescent and Dooley block buildings to encourage a mix of daytime and evening commercial activity, including new storefronts for small businesses, an expanded Reunion Brewery restaurant and five-vat brewery, and a new home for Iowa City's Riverside Theatre. The project involves seeking historic landmark designation for the older buildings to assist with renovation and preservation efforts and a new 102-unit LEED Gold-certified residential building featuring a mix of one-, two- and three-bedroom apartments.
Developers are proposing paying "in lieu of" fees totaling $1.8 million toward the city's affordable housing fund rather than incorporate affordable housing within the building - a decision that did not sit well with several council members and Iowa City resident Nicholas Theisen, a frequent critic of the council's development decisions and commitment to affordable housing.
Developers "always get theirs first," Mr. Theisen said of the project, adding that "the people who actually have to deal with the conditions that those developers create, well, we always have to wait.”
Despite some reservations, council members like John Thomas called its benefits "extraordinary."
“It’s really quite impressive,” he said.
According to Iowa City Economic Development Director Wendy Ford, benefits include historic preservation of significant downtown buildings and re-energizing commerce in those commercial spaces.
She said the Tailwind Group began working on the project after they purchased their first building there in 2017. Tailwind has since acquired all the buildings on the block except for the Savings and Loan building on the corner, which is not part of the project.
Developers requested TIF rebates because they have secured maximum allowable debt of $35.8 million for the project, leaving a $9 million gap to be filled by private loan financing.
IMAGE: A view across the Iowa City Ped Mall from the Dooley block of what a portion of the renovated block could look like. CREDIT NEUMANN MONSON
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In the CBJ: Moyna projects reshaping southern Corridor |
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Elkader-based grading contractor and site developer C.J. Moyna & Sons is the force behind two of three projects setting the stage for growth in the southern Corridor as the new year begins.
The most visible of the three — site preparation of tracts along the Riverside Drive exit off U.S. 218, just south of the Johnson County Fairgrounds — may hold the least immediate potential for development. The other Moyna-related project, development of the 284-acre Shiloh property recently annexed by the city of Kalona, could deliver a quicker impact, adding 150 residential lots and a chunk of recreation land to the northern Washington County community’s offerings.
Further south, the city of Washington has recently subdivided seven acres into lots to accommodate 39 single and multi-family residential units to address what City Administrator Brent Hinson describes as “an unbelievably tight housing market.”
U.S. 218 & Riverside Drive
Last year’s grading of the northernmost tip of Moyna’s large tract adjacent to Iowa City’s corporate limits is part of “meandering through the development process” for that area, said Moyna project manager Adam Kos.
In October 2019, the Johnson County Board of Supervisors approved Moyna’s request to designate the parcels at the point of land bounded by Riverside Drive and Oakcrest Hill Road for intense commercial use in the county’s long-range plan. The municipal infrastructure such as water and sewer needed for that type of development makes annexation by Iowa City desirable, said Mr. Kos.
Hence, the site preparation. “It was hard to convey what the land would look like and what the uses will be. Now that it’s graded, we want to re-engage (with the) city and talk about options,” said Mr. Kos. One possibility is a Moyna satellite office.
Read the full members-only story in this week's print or digital editions of the CBJ.
PHOTO: Structures on the 284-acre former Shiloh Ministries property have been removed to prepare the rolling and partially wooded area for development. CREDIT EMERY STYRON
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Video: Marion streetscape project kicks off this spring |
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A major, multimillion-dollar construction project to revamp the Uptown Marion district is slated to start this spring, news partner KCRG-TV9 reports. The 7th Avenue Streetscape & Plaza Project will change the look of the street, with new trees and lighting, a wider sidewalk on one side of the road, and angled parking replacing parallel parking on the other side of the street. The City of Marion said the $6.5 million project will fix aging infrastructure issues on the avenue, including improving the road condition and adding a currently nonexistent storm sewer. Read the full story and watch the video here.
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IC Area HBA Home Show goes virtual for 2021 |
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The Greater Iowa City Area Home Builders Association has announced that the 2021 Iowa City Area HBA Home Show will be an online only event this year.
The free week-long event, presented by Collins Community Credit Union and Lepic-Kroeger, Realtors, happens Feb. 22-28 via a new interactive website that currently is under development.
The easy-to-use format lets the public experience The Home Show at any time and from anywhere. Highlights will include daily register-to-win giveaways; exhibitor listings with contact details; featured exhibitor videos; an expert-advice blog; and a kids raffle. Show information will remain on the website until the 2022 Home Show so resources can be accessed all year long.
“We are thrilled to be able to have the Home Show this year through our revamped website,” said Home Show Chair Devin Madsen of Collins Community Credit Union. “The new format lets the public safely enjoy the show and provides exhibitors unique opportunities to share how consumers can benefit from the products or services they offer.”
Corridor consumers will want to mark their calendars for Feb. 21, the day The Home Show magazine appears in the Cedar Rapids Gazette and "The Home Show Preview" airs at 11 a.m. on CBS 2/KGAN. It’s a chance to see participating exhibitors and learn more about what to expect.
Find more information about exhibitors, sponsors, giveaways, contest winners and more through The Iowa City Area HBA Home Show’s social media platforms. Like The Iowa City Area HBA Home Show on Facebook and follow Home Show news on Instagram at icareahba and #icareahbahomeshow.
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Have a derecho rebuilding story to share? Let us know |
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After sustaining the costliest thunderstorm in U.S. history this past summer, the Corridor region is slowly building back, although the road ahead remains long, and its influence will be seen and felt for years to come.
The CBJ is planning a special issue in early February marking the six-month anniversary of the devastating Aug. 10 derecho, and we’d like to include as many personal business stories as we can gather – to see and hear how our resilient community has battled back.
Specifically, we’re looking for two photos: One of your business (or a business you've worked with) immediately after the storm and another of what it looks like today. With your help, we’re hoping to compile a special feature documenting the business community’s ongoing progress toward rebuilding and recovery through first-hand stories
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Please send your before and after photos, along with a brief description of how the derecho impacted your business and the progress you’ve made to recover by Jan. 29 to katharine@corridorbusiness.com with the subject line “Derecho Recovery.” If your photos are selected, you will be contacted by a CBJ reporter for a brief follow-up.
IMAGE: Zoey's Pizzeria was one of scores of businesses damaged in the Aug. 10 derecho. The restaurant, located at 10th Street and Seventh Avenue in Marion, has since completed repairs and reopened for dining. CREDIT ZOEY'S
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Open house on sharing
Forward the FREE, weekly CBJ Real Estate Report newsletter to your friends and colleagues, and share the feeling of being informed! Use our fast, one-minute subscription to the CBJ's newsletters here, or check out our other subscription options here.
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Short Term Event Planner
Jan. 21
Turning Your Marketing Efforts into Real Relationships, by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, 8:30-9:30 a.m., online. Learn conversational marketing techniques, hear case examples of current conversation based marketing and learn how to start your own conversation-based campaign. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/38lF1Cj.
Startup Exchange MeetUp, by Marion Economic Development Corp., 8:30-9:30 a.m., online. Josh Streets, CEO & founder of Scoreboard Group Consulting, is the guest speaker. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/3suxyZN.
Jan. 22
Legislative Forum, by Iowa City Area Business Partnership, 2:30-3:30 p.m., online. Hear from elected officials during the 2021 legislative session. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/3pUhrlY.
Business Leader Public Policy Discussion, by Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance, Marion Chamber of Commerce, Marion Economic Development Corporation and Hiawatha Economic Development Corporation, 3-4 p.m., online. Speak directly to area legislators about timely issues most important to the business community. Free. To register, visit bit.ly/35zr7KU.
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These news items are provided by KCRG-TV9
The Eastern Iowa Airport took a big hit in 2020 because of the pandemic. From 2019 to 2020, it saw a more than 50% loss of passengers. The airport saw 616,000 passengers in 2020, down from 1.34 million in 2019. Airport Director Marty Lenss says that’s the first time since 2013 they’ve seen less than 1 million total passengers. “The industry has not gone through a downturn as significant as this has been. 9/11 wasn’t this significant, and certainly, past economic recessions were never this hard on the industry,” Lenss said. That’s a lot fewer people paying for parking, grabbing snacks, or buying a souvenir at the airport. “We are anticipating about a $9.6 million loss in revenue, which is about 41%. A 41% loss of revenue. It’s a significant hit,” Lenss said. The airport received $22.8 million in CARES Act funds last summer. Lenss says that money is critical to keeping people staffed, and also helps keep the rates with their airline partners locked in. Read the full story here.
The pandemic is not keeping Eastern Iowa high school students from job shadowing. Workplace Learning Connection through Kirkwood Community College has coordinated virtual opportunities with the help of area businesses. Picking a career can be overwhelming for those who haven’t quite graduated high school yet, that’s why the WLC focuses on job shadow and internship opportunities for sophomores, juniors and seniors across Eastern Iowa. “It’s giving them that opportunity before they even graduate to figure out what are they interested in, what do they want to do once they walk across that stage and get their diploma,” says Brittany Slaubaugh, program coordinator and business liaison for Workplace Learning Connection. The WLC moved their efforts online this fall due to the pandemic. Prairie Senior Hannah Lester decided to give it a try by attending the virtual pharmacy job shadow day. “It felt a lot like a college visit, which was nice because I think that that helped me since I can’t really go visit college right now,” Lester told us. She says the experience helped her decide to study Pre-Pharmacy in college, a switch from her earlier plans. Read the full story here.
These news items are provided by KCRG-TV9
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Your KCRG-TV9 First Alert Forecast |
Lots of sunshine expected this afternoon as highs rise above freezing. Highs will be in the mid to upper 30s. Winds will be gusty at times from the southwest. Overnight, partly cloudy skies as temperatures drop into the 20s. Quiet conditions continue through the end of the week. Highs stay in the 30s tomorrow, before falling into the teens on Friday. Clouds build in on Saturday ahead of our next system that brings the chance of snow Saturday night and into Sunday morning. Accumulations are possible, but it's still too early to talk specifics.
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